Cana named Black Cats skipper

04 Sep 2009 11:52:45

// A bit of a hack but it works// The article snippet is wrapped onto a second line, even when #article-sub is emptyif( $("div#article-sub").children().length == 0 ) {$("div#article-sub").remove();} Albania international Lorik Cana has been appointed new Sunderland captain by manager Steve Bruce.
The 26-year-old arrived at the Stadium of Light with a big reputation in a £5million deal from French giants Marseille this summer.
The midfielder has so far impressed Bruce enough to be handed the captaincy in the wake of former skipper Dean Whitehead's move to Stoke City.
Whitehead was then followed to the Britannia Stadium by stand-in captain Danny Collins, leaving the role vacant for Bruce to make a new appointment.
Bruce is confident Cana fits the bill and has assured Black Cats fans that if they are unsure of the decision, they will soon find out it is the correct one.
Bruce told the Sunderland Echo: "Some people might raise their eyebrows and think, 'he's a foreign player.'
"But he speaks the language perfectly well, he leads by example, he's a good age, he's got experience, he captains his country and he's captained his old club in Marseille.
"I think anybody who's watched him will understand why I have made him captain of the club."